Male flowers of Helwingia japonica
The male flowers of Helwingia japonica. Small and not showy, they are still quite special; note that the flowers are emerging from the leaf, instead of the stem. This is a phenomenon called epiphylly. Here’s the text from the former interpretative sign about Helwingia japonica in the Garden: “Look closely at the upper surface of the broad, ovate leaves of Helwingia japonica in May and you’ll notice tiny green flowers arising from the centre of the leaf. Helwingia are monoecious shrubs, their separate male and female flowers arranged in tiny umbels. Rare in nature, epiphyllous flowers (Greek: epi = upon, phyllon = leaf) develop with their pedicels fused to the midrib of the leaf. This unusual arrangement is thought to be an adaptation that assists pollination by small insects. Helwingiaceae is a monotypic family (i.e., comprising only a single genus, Helwingia), with all three species native to the Himalayas and eastern Asia”.
Dr. Tim Dickinson of the University of Toronto has written a concise description of the developmental biology of epiphyllous growth in Helwingia, accompanied by images.
As mentioned on the interpretative sign, epiphylly is a rare phenomenon – a quick search suggested the condition occurs on some genera in perhaps a half dozen plant families, almost all of which are tropical. It’s very likely that UBC Botanical Garden is one of the few places in Canada you can see this phenomenon, although I note one nursery in Ontario is selling the plants (do a search for “Helwingia japonica” +Canada). If you’re visiting the garden, the most obvious place to find it is by the bench on the small meadow off of Lower Asian Way.
The garden has two of the three species in the Helwingiaceae in its collection, H. japonica and Helwingia chinensis. There’s a good distribution map for the family on the web page for Aquifoliales at the Missouri Botanical Garden. While visiting that link, be sure to click on the link that says “photo-fruit” immediately to the left of the map. Unfortunately, you can’t see the fruit at UBC – our plants are all male. One of our identified collection priorities for both research and education is to obtain a documented wild origin female plant of the species, as that is currently a gap in both the story that we can tell about this plant and what we can learn from it.
Wow! When I first saw that, I thought there was a teeny crab on the leaf! Then I thought the flower had fallen off something. I was going to ask whether it grew on the stem, when I read the description. Now I have a different question. Could you link to a picture that shows the plant in perspective, like Raoula Australis? I am wondering how big it really is.
dear sir, thank you for your website.
I see about plant of Helwingia japonica and H.himalica in your website but I don’t know about it. I am nepali I leave in nepal so I have seen these kinds of plant so that please give me any information about this plant?
best regards/ CHINIYA/NEPAL……………..
Hello Chiniya,
You might want to start with Helwingia in the Flora of China.
We grow and propagate this Helwingia japonica at the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden (and MsK Rare Plant Nursery) in Shoreline, Washington (www.kruckeberg.org). Our plant is five feet tall and growing very nicely in rather dense shade! It sports attractive, green stems and has a purple stripe to the midpoint of each leaf, where the flower appears (not evident in the photo on the UBC page). Unfortunately, we do NOT have a female to offer!
I love to show these weird flowers to our tours, for they always bring exclamations of amazement.
My guess is that the Pleurothallidinae group of the Orchidaceae contains the largest number of species exhibiting this morphology.
Locally, Miner’s Lettuce, Claytonia perfoliata appears to exhibit this morphology.
If neither of those examples are epiphylly, please educate me! =)
Sure, I’ll educate you. From the “Categorical Glossary for the Flora of North America Project”:
epiphyllous {insertion, position} Upon the leaves, or partially adnate thereto and apparently arising therefrom
perfoliate {architecture} [foliaceous structure] Having a sessile lamina (blade) that uninterruptedly encircles the bearing axis which thus passes through it at some point within the margin.
For Claytonia and Pleurothallis, the flowers are actually borne on a peduncle, whereas the flowers of Helwingia are borne on the leaf itself.
It is really sea of information.
Beatiful.
I have seen a bush of this plant where the flowers look just like the end of an orange. Is this a female?
You can see a photo on Flickr here.
Yes, that one looks like a female.
Hello,
that’s a magnificent R.augustinii!
(not available in N.S.W.,Australia,sadly)
I grow Helwingia-it is truly fascinating.
Mine came from a plant imported from Heronswood
Nursery.
I’ll keep watching your site.
Regards,
Linda.
There is a nice specimen growing in Savannah GA at the Armstrong Atlantic University Arboretum. I took cuttings and rooted them successfully under mist. Now I have several plants in the ground in Gainesville FL that are doing just fine.